Grammy, Juno nominations highlight Jennifer Gasoi’s big year

If your kids haven’t yet heard of Vancouver-born children’s artist Jennifer Gasoi, they’d better throw their headphones on and brush up on her latest album before the 2014 Grammy Awards.

Get them to play it over the loudspeakers for that matter, because the indie singer-songwriter’s sophomore release, nominated last week for a Grammy award for Best Children’s Album of the year, is a fun, catchy and sophisticated romp across musical genres that listeners of all ages can’t help but get behind.

“My hope is to transcend genres, categories and create music that is equally accessible for and reaches the hearts of kids and adults alike,” said Gasoi, in a press release that spread word of her Grammy nod. “The songs are universal and intergenerational.”

It’s a bold claim that her new album, Throw a Penny in the Wishing Well, nominated for both Juno and Grammy Awards, somehow backs up. Gasoi music parades listeners through swing halls, backyard blue-grass joints, doo-wop studios and gospel churches, while her lyrics never stray too far from her young target audience. Nevertheless, Gasoi’s musical literacy helps keep adults tapping their feet as her tracks roll through styles as diverse as Cajun, calypso and klezmer.

The former Vancouverite is no stranger to the spotlight. Her debut album Songs for You was nominated for a 2005 Juno award. She also took home a Gold Parent Choice Award for that effort. But with this year’s record, things are heating up for Gasoi, who was chosen as Sirius XM Indie Children’s Artist of the Year and was a semifinalist in the 2013 International Songwriting Competition.

Gasoi moved from Vancouver to Montreal in 2002, but locals may remember her singing jazz alongside pianist Linton Garner, who was a mainstay on the Vancouver music scene for decades before he died in 2003. Gasoi was also a regular at Vancouver Jazz Festivals, appearing in 1999, 2000 and 2001, and she took the stage at the 2004 Chutzpah! festival. Since that festival, her Vancouver appearances have been increasingly infrequent, while her national audience has continued to grow.

In 2004, Gasoi took a nomination for a Western Canadian Music Award for Outstanding Children’s Album, and in the same year, listeners of CBC’s Definitely Not the Opera voted her song Butterfly to the top of its fan choices.

But Gasoi’s 2014 Grammy nomination takes her to great new heights with exposure on an international stage. She will find out whether she takes home an award at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards on Jan. 26.

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Grammy, Juno nominations highlight Jennifer Gasoi’s big year

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